Altai Eagle Festival tour 2023

Accommodation info on your Mongolia tours 

Ulaanbaatar: Ulaanbaatar, the capital city of Mongolia, offers a variety of hotels ranging from basic guesthouses to high-end 5* hotel.

Some of our Mongolia tours do not include the hotel stays in Ulaanbaatar in the tour package, where clients can choose a hotel that suits their needs and budget. Please make sure to check your tour program`s Inclusions and Exclusions section to confirm if your hotel stay is included in the package.

If you wish us to book your hotel for you, your travel consultant will be happy to recommend and book an ideal hotel for you. 

Here are hotels that are recommended by us:  

• Springs hotel (3*)
• Holiday Inn (4*)
• Best Western Premier (5*)
• Shangri-La Hotel (5*)

Outside Ulaanbaatar: Outside of Ulaanbaatar where there are no hotels, tourist Ger (yurt) camps are the best accommodation for travelers. A Ger is Mongolian traditional dwelling made of felt layers and wooden construction, and the Mongolians have lived in Gers for thousands of years. Tourist Ger camps offer comfortable Gers with 1-3 beds with good bedding (1 Ger equals 1 hotel room), and also offer well-maintained public western style showers and WCs on their grounds. Some Ger camps offer en-suite bathroom facilities at additional charge, please ask your Selena Travel advisor for further details when booking your Mongolia tour. 

Food on Selena Travel tours 

In the capital city of Ulaanbaatar, a great variety of restaurants can be found and you will be eating at some of the best restaurants of Ulaanbaatar on your Mongolia tour while in the capital. Once you are outside the capital, Ger restaurants in Ger camps, local cafes in the small towns and sometimes nomadic families will be the places where you will be eating most of your meal. Ger restaurants often offer set continental breakfasts, set menu lunches and dinners consisting of salad or soup, main course and dessert.

 While on the tour, during your longer driving days you will take packed lunch from Ger camps, often vegetable salad, main course such as fried chicken/noodles/dumplings and a small dessert, while hitting the road. Most of the food restrictions and allergies such as vegetarian, vegan, gluten free and many others, can be accommodated with easy on your Mongolia adventure.

 Luggage allowance on Selena Travel tours 

If you are on an overland only tour across Mongolia, the recommended weight of your luggage is 20kg per person (max). However, kindly note that domestic flight luggage allowance per person is 15 kg (10 kg for the check in luggage and 5 kg for the carry on luggage). It is possible to purchase extra luggage space which costs US$2 - 5 per 1kg.

DESTINATION & ATTRACTIONS BRIEF INFO

Historically, nomadic Kazakhs of Western Mongolia depended on Golden Eagles for hunting. The Berkut Association is a community-based association consisting of local Kazakhs who are committed to preserving their traditional heritage and conserving the Golden Eagle. All proceeds from the festival's ticket sales will go to the Berkut Association, which will use these funds to further the goals of the organization including arranging the eagle festival each year. The Golden eagle festival will be held on 03 – 04 Oct 2015.

One of the last true wilderness areas of Asia, the stunning beauty of the magnificent Altai Mountains will be the backdrop for this extraordinary Eagle Festival. A highlight of any trip to this region is interacting with local Kazakhs and learning about their unique culture. Approximately ninety percent of the population of Bayan-Ulgii is Kazakh and though their pastoral-nomadic lifestyle is similar to that of Mongolians, these Kazakh-speaking nomads are predominantly Moslem. Passed down from their Turkic ancestors, many Kazakhs are still hunting with trained Golden Eagles whose vision is eight times more acute than humans.

Female eagles are preferred since they are believed to be more aggressive and weigh as much as fifteen pounds (nearly one-third more than the males). Kazakh women are renowned for their skills in embroidery and appliqué-hand-crafted felt carpets line the floor of their gers and delicately embroidered tapestries adorn the walls in a dazzling mosaic of colors.